Nixon centennial events

11 a.m. today: Nixon Presidential Library & Museum, 18001 Yorba Linda Blvd. (Free admission all day at the library) Events will include the laying of a White House wreath; remarks from Nixon family members and former White House aide Bruce Herschensohn.

6 p.m. EST, Wednesday: In Washington D.C., on what would have been Richard Nixon's 100th birthday, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger will host a birthday dinner with many of Nixon's family members, friends, and supporters at the Mayflower Hotel.

Feb. 15: At the Nixon Presidential Library & Museum, a special centennial exhibit will open, focusing on five key chapters in Nixon's life. The exhibit will be curated by the Nixon Foundation and the National Archives. Information: 714-993-5075, nixonfoundation.org or nixonlibrary.gov.

Richard Milhous Nixon had a fascination with foreign lands.

During his presidency and vice-presidency, he globe-hopped, making his famous trip to open up China in 1972. He visited the Soviet Union more than once, and even survived having his motorcade attacked by an angry mob in Venezuela.

But it was sleepy corners of Southern California where he was born, rose to prominence, and then retreated after his presidency crumbled.

“His childhood in Orange County meant very much to him,” said Patricia Nixon Cox, the former president’s younger daughter. “My father sometimes said (California) seemed to have limitless possibilities.”

This week, a century from the day he was born, his family, friends, and supporters are preparing to celebrate the life of the 37th president.

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Former President Richard Nixon gives the iconic thumbs up while walking with Pat at opening of Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace in 1990. ANA VENEGAS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Vice President Richard Nixon shakes hands with Prime Minister Winston Churchill at Washington National Airport on June 29, 1954 as he bid farewell to the British diplomat as he leaves for Canada after a weekend of talks with President Eisenhower on world problems. Sir Anthony Eden, British Foreign Minister, who accompanied Churchill, and United States Secretary of State John Foster Dulles are at center. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Vice President Richard Nixon accompanied by his wife Pat and their daughters, Julie, 7, left, and Patricia, 9, hold hands as they leave the Fantasyland Castle at Disneyland, Near Anaheim, Calif., Aug. 11, 1955. Nixon had promised his daughters a day at Disneyland as part of their week vacation in California. They spent the day sight-seeing and enjoying the rides. Behind them are news media and tourists who followed them during their tour. ASSOCIATED PRESS
As Queen Elizabeth II smiles, Vice President Richard Nixon registers surprise over something said during farewells at Union Station in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 20, 1957. The Queen and Prince Philip were heading to New York after a four-day visit in nation's Capital as guests of President Dwight Eisenhower and Mrs. Eisenhower. Nixon, accompanied by his wife, voiced official goodbyes at the station. President and Mrs. Eisenhower had bid farewell to Queen and Philip at the White House earlier. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Secretary of Labor James P. Mitchell, right, shakes hands with Rev. Martin Luther King as Vice President Richard Nixon looks on August 8, 1957 in Washington. NATIONAL ARCHIVE, NEWSMAKERS
Vice President Richard Nixon and his family sit in a monorail car, with Walt Disney standing at right and Art Linkletter at rear in bubble of car in 1959 at the opening of the Matterhorn at Disneyland in Anaheim. RENIE BARDEAU, DISNEYLAND, VIA AP
Apollo XI astronauts Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin laugh with President Richard Nixon aboard the USS Hornet, July 24, 1969. The President was on hand to greet the astronauts after their splashdown in the Pacific. NIXON FOUNDATION, GETTY IMAGES
President Richard Nixon, center, gets set to throw out the first ball to open the American League baseball season, April 7, 1969, Washington, D.C. In front of Nixon's throwing arm are extra balls held in readiness for additional tosses. He made two extra throws. The Washington Senators and the New York Yankees met in the opener. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Pope Paul VI presents visiting President Richard Nixon with a framed portrait of himself and with medals of his Pontificate, during the President's meeting with the Pontiff in Vatican City, March 2, 1969. At right stands Msgr. Pasquale Macchi the Pope's private secretary. GIULIO BROGLIO, AP PHOTO
President Richard Nixon meets with Elvis Presley December 21, 1970 at the White House. NATIONAL ARCHIVES, GETTY IMAGES
President Richard M. Nixon and Gene Autry, left, pass a baseball they signed between themselves for a youngster at a California Angels game in Anaheim in 1970. Autry, who parlayed a $5 mail order guitar into a career was Hollywood's first singing cowboy. RICHARD NIXON LIBRARY ARCHIVE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Richard Nixon poses for picture with Marion "John" Wayne, July 10, 1972 in Washington, D.C. NATIONAL ARCHIVES, GETTY IMAGES
President Richard Nixon says goodbye outside the White House on August 9, 1974, as he prepares to board a helicopter for a flight to nearby Andrews Air Force Base. BOB DAUGHERTY, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Former Republican United States Presidents Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, George Bush and Gerald Ford pose for a photo together during the dedication of the Richard Nixon Library on July 20, 1990. PAUL KURODA, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Legendary comedian Bob Hope, right, who has been entertaining U.S. presidents since FDR, presents fond and funny moments with some of the nations's Chief Executive Officers in "BOB HOPE... LAFFS WITH THE PRESIDENTS." Here, in this undated photo, he putts with President Richard Nixon in the White House. GARY NULL, NBC
Former President Richard Nixon gets his share of the locker room celebration after the California Angels defeated the Kansas City Royals to win the Western Division tittle of the American League as Angels second baseman Bobby Grich pours beer over the former president's head on Sept. 26, 1979 in Anaheim. SPINA, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Former U.S. presidents Ronald Reagan, left, Richard Nixon, and Gerarld Ford, far right, pose with U.S. President George Bush, second from right, in the Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace in Yorba Linda on July 19, 1990. BARRY THUMMA, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Former President Richard M. Nixon speaks on campus May 15, 1984. He is seen here with Chairman of the Board of Trustees George L. Argyros class of '59. FRANK MT. PLEASANT LIBRARY OF SPECIAL COLLECTIONS AND ARCHIVES, CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY
TIMELINE OF NIXON'S LIFE: Richard Nixon's parents, Frank and Hannah Nixon (1908). COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
The farmhouse built in 1912 where America's 37th President, Richard Nixon was born. On July 19, 1990 the birthplace was dedicated and opened to the public by President Nixon, Ford, Reagan, Bush and their First Ladies. COURTESY RICHARD NIXON LIBRARY & BIRTHPLACE
Boyhood photo of Richard Nixon - Age 3 (1916). COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Richard Nixon, right, with his parents Frank and Hannah and siblings (circa 1917). ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER ARCHIVES
Brothers Donald (7), Richard (9), Harold (12), Arthur Nixon (4), from left, in Yorba Linda (ca. 1923). COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Young Richard Nixon with a violin, age 15 (1928). his parents encouraged him to participate in extracurricular activities including music. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
In this circa 1930s photo, Richard Nixon is shown as a member of the Whittier College football squad in Whittier. Years later as President Richard Nixon, he declared himself for pro football "all the way," and told his attorney general to offer the NFL league a quid pro quo: Televise home playoff games, and the president will prevent legislation requiring regular-season home games to be aired as well. NFL Commissioner Pete Rozelle turned him down. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Whittier College football team, Richard Nixon wears #23 (1933). COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
This picture shows Vice President Richard Nixon as a World War II lieutenant commander in the U.S. Navy, stationed in August, 1944 at the Naval Air Station, Alameda, California. Nixon had just returned to the United States under a rotation program from duty in the South Pacific as ground officer for the Combat Air Transport Command at Vella Lavella, Bougainville, Solomon Islands. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Family portrait of Richard Nixon, Pat Nixon and infant daughter Tricia in 1946. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
After Richard Nixon, right, was elected to the House of Representatives from California, he and his wife Pat Nixon, left, and daughter Tricia Nixon, in basket, moved to the nation's capital, June 9, 1946, Washington, D.C. In this photograph released by the White House, the Nixons are shown posing near the Jefferson Memorial. WHITE HOUSE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Congressman Richard Nixon and Robert Stripling, the chief investigator for the House Committee on Un-American Activities, reviewing the "Pumpkin Papers" microfilm related to the Alger Hiss case in 1948. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Rep. Richard M. Nixon, R-Calif., meets with reporters Dec. 6, 1948 about testimony of Whittaker Chambers that Alger Hiss, former State Department official, gave Chambers "restricted" government documents that were relayed to a Russian agent. At right, Rep. John Rankin, D-Miss, confers with Robert Stripling, standing, chief investigator for the House Un-American Activities committee. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Congressman Richard Nixon tallying the vote for his senate campaign on election night Nov. 7, 1950. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Rep. Richard M. Nixon, (R-Calif.), stands on a Mercury car to address listeners on his campaign trail on the California coast, northwest of Los Angeles, April 22, 1950. Nixon was campaigning for the U.S. Senate nomination. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Richard Nixon and Pat Nixon. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Students at Fullerton High School applaud Nixon during his 1952 campaign. ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER ARCHIVES
Richard Nixon, Republican candidate for the Vice Presidency, explains an $18,000 expense fund on national television, September 23, 1952. The appearance was nicknamed his "Checkers" speech because of his reference to the family dog, the one contribution he admitted receiving, from a Texas supporter who gave his family a Cocker spaniel. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sen. Richard M. Nixon, right, Republican Vice Presidential candidate, stands with Dwight D. Eisenhower, the Presidential nominee, on the platform during a rally at Wheeling, West Va., September 24, 1952. Nixon, whose $18,235 political expense fund caused a furor, flew to Wheeling to meet with Eisenhower. Ike told the crowd he had full faith in Nixon and that the GOP National Committee had voted to keep Nixon on the ticket. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Sen. Richard Nixon, Republican Vice Presidential Candidate, relaxes with his family on the lawn of their Washington D.C. home on Sept. 28, 1952. With the Senator is his wife, Pat, their children Julie and Patricia, and their cocker-spaniel, Checkers. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Vice President Richard Nixon, Pat Nixon, their daughters Tricia and Julie, and their dog Checkers at the beach on August 16, 1953. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Vice President Richard Nixon is seen with his dog "Checkers," at his home in Spring Valley neighborhood of Washington, DC., on July 2, 1959. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Soviet Premier Nikita Khrushchev, center left, talks with U.S. Vice President Richard Nixon during their famous "Kitchen Debate" at the United States exhibit at Moscow's Sokolniki Park, July 24, 1959. While touring the exhibit, both men kept a running debate on the merits of their respective countries. Standing to the right is Khrushchev's deputy, Leonid Brezhnev. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Republican Vice President Richard M. Nixon, listens as Sen. John F. Kennedy, the Democratic presidential nominee, makes a point during a live broadcast from a New York television studio of their fourth presidential debate on Oct. 21, 1960. The candidates' performance in this debate is often credited with helping lift Kennedy to victory in the general election. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Presidential candidates Sen. John Kennedy, left, and Vice President Richard Nixon pose Sept. 26,1960, following their debate at a Chicago television studio. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Mrs. Hannah Nixon, mother of the vice president crosses her finger for good luck as voting inspector Mrs. Midred Orr drops her ballot into the box. Mrs. Nixon was the first voter at her polling place on Nov. 8, 1960. COURTESY OF USC
Vice President Richard M. Nixon meets with president-elect John F. Kennedy in Florida days after the 1960 presidential election. Nixon conceded defeat evidence that voter fraud cost him the election. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Richard Nixon at a 1968 campaign event. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Nominated again as the Republican presidential candidate, Richard Nixon holds fingers aloft in a victory gesture as he stands before the GOP Convention in Miami Beach, the night of August 9, 1968, to make his acceptance speech. Nixon, defeated by John F. Kennedy in 1960, predicted victory in 1968. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Republican presidential nominee Richard Nixon plays a rendition of "Deep in the Heart of Texas" at the piano in Miami, Fla., on Aug. 9, 1968. HENRY BURROUGHS, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Presidential candidate Richard Nixon flashes the victory sign as he acknowledges cheers from the crowd, at the fairgrounds of Springfield, Mo., on September 19, 1968. ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Richard Nixon greeting troops in Dian, South Vietnam on July 30, 1969. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
President Nixon is surrounded by combat infantrymen of the U.S. First Infantry Division at their headquarters at Di An, 12 miles north of Saigon on July 30, 1969. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Richard Nixon on February 19, 1970 in Washington, D.C. NATIONAL ARCHIVES, GETTY IMAGES
President Nixon points to a map at the White House in 1970 after announcing that American ground troops had attacked a Communist complex in Cambodia. DENIS D. GRAY, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Richard Nixon bowls on the White House bowling alley lanes. NIXON PRESIDENTIAL MATERIALS, NATIONAL ARCHIVES
Rose Mary Woods works with then-Sen. Richard M. Nixon. Woods was the devoted secretary to Nixon who said she inadvertently erased part of a crucial Watergate tape. RICHARD NIXON LIBRARY & BIRTHPLACE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
President and Mrs. Nixon look at the ocean January 13, 1971 at a beach in San Clemente. NATIONAL ARCHIVES, GETTY IMAGES
The President and Mrs. Nixon look at the ocean August 20, 1971 at a beach in San Clemente. NATIONAL ARCHIVES, GETTY IMAGES
President Richard Nixon dances with his daughter, Tricia, during her wedding reception June 12, 1971 at the White House. NATIONAL ARCHIVES, GETTY IMAGES
White House Presidential publicity photo of Richard Nixon (1971). HOWELL CONANT, WHITE HOUSE, COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
President Richard Nixon signs the Constitution's amendment which guarantees 18-year-olds the right to vote in all elections. Robert Kunzig, general services administrator, waits to certify officially ratification of the 26th Amendment. The signing took place July 4, 1971 in East Room of the White House in Washington. Paul Larimer of Concord, Calif., a member of the singing group "Young Americans" also signed the amendment. CHARLES TASNADI, ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Richard Nixon and First Lady Pat Nixon, at their home, the western white house "Casa Pacifica" in August 1969. It was established in San Clemente during the late 1960s and early 1970s. CLAY MILLER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
A beaming President Richard Nixon is greeted by 20,000 people crowded onto grounds of Western White House to greet him in 1972. President Nixon made his home and had the Western White House established in San Clemente during the late 1960s and early 70s. CLAY MILLER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Presidential White House publicity photo of Richard Nixon with signature (1972). COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
President Richard Nixon and Chinese Premier Chou en-Lai toasting (Feb. 25, 1972). COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
President Richard and Pat Nixon; Tricia Nixon and Edward Cox; and Julie Julie and David Eisenhower enjoying dinner in the White House residence on Election Night (1972). OLIVER F. ATKINS, WHITE HOUSE, COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
President Nixon and Soviet leader Leonid Brezhnev sign the Strategic Arms Limitation Treaty at the Grand Kremlin Palace in Moscow, Russia on May 26, 1972. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Chairman Mao Tse-tung, left, and U.S. President Richard Nixon shake hands as they meet in China in Feb. 1972. Nixon's visit, Feb. 21-28, marks the first U.S. presidential visit to the People's Republic of China. ASSOCIATED PRESS
U.S. President Richard Nixon toasts Chou En-lai, China's premier, at a farewell dinner in Peking, China on Feb. 25, 1972. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Premier Chou En-lai bends over in the Chinese manner to eat with chopsticks as President Nixon watches at a banquet in Shanghai, February 28, 1972. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Richard Nixon formal portrait. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
President Nixon on March 15, 1973 tells a White House news conference that he will not allow his legal counsel, John Dean, to testify on Capitol Hill in the Watergate investigation and challenged the Senate to test him in the Supreme Court. A feisty Nixon defended his shredded legacy and Watergate-era actions in grand jury testimony that he thought would never come out. On Nov. 10, 2011, it did. CHARLES TASNADI, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Reporters Bob Woodward, right, and Carl Bernstein, whose reporting of the Watergate case won a Pulitzer Prize, sit in the newsroom of the Washington Post, May 7, 1973. ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Richard M. Nixon speaks with Vice President Gerald Ford in the Oval Office of the White House in 1974. NEWSMAKERS, NATIONAL ARCHIVES
Presidents Anwar Sadat and Richard Nixon shake hands for photographers as they pose in front of the pyramids at Giza, near Cairo, June 14, 1974. HORST FAAS, ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Richard M. Nixon is shown pointing to the transcripts of the White House tapes on April 29, 1974 after he announced during a nationally-televised speech that he would turn over the transcripts to House impeachment investigators. ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Richard Nixon embraces his daughter, Mrs. Julie Eisenhower, Aug. 8, 1974, after informing his family of his decision to resign, in a photo released by the White House. The photo was made in the family's living quarters. WHITE HOUSE, ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Richard M. Nixon and his wife Pat Nixon are shown standing together in the East Room of the White House in this Aug. 9, 1974 where he made a farewell address to the members of the White House staff after resigning the presidency. CHARLIE HARRITY, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Richard M. Nixon waves a final farewell from the helicopter steps as he leaves the White House for the last time after resigning as president, Aug. 9, 1974. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Now Former President Richard Nixon with former First Lady, wife Pat Nixon, waves to supporters, after arriving at USMCAS El Toro on Aug. 9 1974. He landed here, after leaving by helicopter from the White House lawn on his last day at the White House as President. Nixon waves to supporters on tarmac with airport Marine guards behind him. CLAY MILLER, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
David Frost, left, talks with former President Richard Nixon in March prior to taping of his interview, which was broadcast May 4, 1977. In the paid-for interview, Nixon conceded that he let down his friends, the nation, and "our system of government," but insisted that he did not obstruct justice. ASSOCIATED PRESS
President Ronald Reagan joined by former Presidents Richard Nixon, left, Gerald Ford and Jimmy Carter, right, toast each other in the Blue Room at the White House on October 8, 1981 as the four met prior to the departure of the three former Presidents to Cairo for the funeral of President Sadat. ASSOCIATED PRESS
Former President Richard Nixon wipes his face as funeral services begin for his wife, former First Lady Pat Nixon on June, 26, 1993 in Yorba Linda. Others from left, son-in-law Ed Cox, grandson Christopher Cox, and daughter Tricia Nixon Cox. ERIC DRAPER, ASSOCIATED PRESS
Former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, from left, former President Gerald Ford and former President Richard Nixon together during the historic gathering of former President Nixon and his cabinet on the 25th anniversary of Nixon's inauguration at the Nixon Library in Yorba Linda on January 20, 1994. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Schedules and background information for a trip to Ireland are among newly released files from Richard M. Nixon's presidential papers at the National Archives building May 6, 2002 in College Park, MD. The National Archives and Records Administration released 107,200 pages from Nixon's archives, including documents from his National Security Council files. STEFAN ZAKLIN, GETTY IMAGES
Visitors to the Richard Nixon Library and Birthplace Saturday walk through the new lobby with a large presidential seal on the floor. MARK RIGHTMIRE, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Richard Nixon's Birthplace in Yorba Linda. COURTESY NIXON FOUNDATION
Interactive touch screens with a wide array of historic video clips are a feature of the new permanent Watergate Gallery opened at The Richard Nixon Presidential Library and Museum in Yorba Linda on March 31, 2011. JEBB HARRIS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
At his Whittier home, Hubert Perry, 99, a Whittier College classmate of Richard Nixon's, has a wall in his recreation room decorated with Nixon memorabilia, including copies of letters Richard Nixon wrote to Hubert's father, Herman L. Perry. The originals are in the Richard Nixon Presidential Library archives. Herman Perry, a member of the Republican State Central Committee, was instrumental in inviting Nixon to run for his first public office, as a congressman from Whittier. Nixon accepted and won the election in 1946. BRUCE CHAMBERS, ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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